Nine athletes (four males, five females) participated in this study. The purpose of this study was to examine bilateral landing and jumping kinetics during performance of a repetitive tuck jump task in athletes who had undergone anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and completed rehabilitation. However, previous studies have only examined forces and loading rates for tasks involving an isolated land-and-jump. their limb that underwent reconstruction), which may place their uninvolved limb at risk for injury. Table 1.Athletes who have undergone anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction typically exhibit relatively high/rapid loading of their uninvolved limb during bilateral landing and jumping (vs. The player's baseline performance can be compared to repeated assessments performed at the midpoint and conclusion of training periods, to objectively track improvements in jumping and landing technique. Indicators of flawed techniques should be noted and should be focused on during subsequent training sessions. The deficits are checked and are then summed or tallied for the final assessment score. The higher the score the more deficits observed.

The player’s technique for each metric is subjectively rated as either having an apparent deficit or not (for every deficit or fault observed from the checklist the player is allocated 1 point). Using two test administrators, one can inspect from the side while the other may inspect from in front of the player. below) provided a total of 10 items to observe and check during the performance of the 10 tuck jumps. The front and side view check list (see Table 1. A video recording will allow a thorough inspection following the test but the coach may choose to assess the tuck jump with the help of a second person, should they not have access to video capture. The player completes 10 rapid, consecutive tuck jumps while taking off and landing in the one place. Also note a tape placed on the floor level with the player’s toes. Test Set-up: Note the player standing with a wall marker tape at a level of the top of the player’s thigh. The tuck jump assessment should ideally be filmed (smartphones are suitable and easy to use) from both a front and lateral view.įigure 5. Also place a tape marker on the ground representing the player’s feet position the equivalent of shoulder-width apart. To set up a standardised procedure to assess the tuck jump, use wall markers at a height of the top of the player’s thigh when they flex the hip at 90 degrees when standing upright (Figure 4.). The following test administration procedures will allow the S&C coach and the medics to track improvements across the training period in this easily administered test. The same exercise – the tuck jump – can also be used as an assessment to grade improvement in technique during a training period. Tuck jumps are used to train athletes across a wide range of sports to increase lower body power. This reliability means that the test reports consistent results across different administrators and over time (Myer et al 2008, 2011, Herrington et al 2013). In addition, studies have reported acceptable levels of both intra- and inter-reliability for this test. Given this finding across several studies, the tuck jump can be considered a useful test or screen to assess injury risk potential and many clinicians and therapists use this test as part of a return to play assessment protocol.

Evidence from Myklebust and colleagues in 1998 suggests that female athletes across many sports demonstrate a 4 to 6 times higher incidence of non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury compared to male athletes participating in the same landing and pivoting sports.įurther according to McLoughlin and colleagues in 2019, injuries to the knee are common in both male and female players within the community and amateur club game. According to Myer and colleagues in 2008, this test was specifically created to assess female athletes who demonstrate “high risk” landing mechanics.

High knee tuck jumps